Undead Savior
by plaidbunny
Summary: When Alfed, and American backpacker in Russia, is saved from the Mafia by Ivan Braginski, the man who cannot die, will life ever be the same again?
1. Shot

**Yeah, hi this is my first fanfic, so don't be too hard!**

**(but don't worry, I am an active reader, so I kinda know how it goes… ^_^)**

**This is a pilot for a later story, based off another manga series called Dogs, so tell me if it is good or not. I do not feel like writing something no one is interested in. Thanks!**

**I do not own Hetalia, or Dogs~**

~~~pasta~~~

_I don't even want to be here_, was the first thought that came to Alfred's mind. He was backpacking across Europe over the summer. And ended up lying on a bed in no other than in Moscow, Russia. He disliked Russia so much. The weather here sucked worse than England's weather, and it was freezing cold and dreary. What had occurred was that he had asked the for the train to **Poland** quite clearly in Ukrainian, **not Russia**. (because we all know how good Alfred in skilled in different languages) So when he jumped on the train headed to Russia, he thought he was going to Poland. When he stepped out of the train in Moscow. He was confused and flustered, and decided to spend the night at a local youth hostel. Even though had missed the assigned dinner time there, he had been allowed to spend the night for a fairly cheap price.

That is where he currently was. Lying on a bed, sort of content, until the unenviable happened. Right around 2:00 am. Alfred was still lying awake, and his stomach growled. He was hungry, and he had eaten his last hamburger on the train, around lunchtime. It was so unfair. Now not only could he not sleep, his stomach was growling. Wait, he had seen a small grocery store on the way here. Hopefully it was a 24-hour one, 'cuz he was _starving_ now. With a groan, Alfred rolled off his bunk, and slipped on his shoes. He took his backpack with him, just for good measure, since this is Russia we are talking about now. You can't trust anyone, freaking commies.

As he trudged through the snow, oversized backpack already on his back, he headed in the general direction of the train station, since he had seen the store _somewhere_ along the way. _Wow, Moscow is so fucking cold. _So he trudged on down the street, freezing because he had not brought his jacket, because it was freaking _summer_, and he hadn't expected to end up in somewhere so depressing. Then because he was just awesome like that, Alfred realized that he was lost. Like hopelessly, lost. _Well this is just great. I am stuck in Moscow, and it's COLD! _ But the next part was the worst. As Alfred tried to continue walking forward, something, no, someone, held him back. He heard the all-too-familiar click of the safety of gun right by his ear. He froze out of habit. Oh god, he was caught by the Russian Mafia! He was as good as dead. Well, if is going out of this world, he is going out _like a hero_!

Slowly, Alfred turned to face his sure end. It seemed to be an ordinary guy. He wore a black suit, though, and obviously he had a gun pointed at Alfred's head. His face was completely in the shadows, though.

"_Вы незаконным проникновением в местности мафии. Теперь вы мертвы мяса__" (1)  
_

To which Alfred responded, "Wuh? Dude, I'm American."

The man rolled his eyes, " You are trespassing Mafia area. You dead meat now"

"Oh" was all Alfred said before attempting to turn and run.

He took about 5 long strides before the gun was fired. Alfred fell to the ground, expecting that he was dead. It took him a few seconds, that he was not even in pain. He had not been shot. Then, slowly, he turned back to look at the man. Except there was something block away. A BIG something. It looked like a pale man, wearing all beige. The shot had gone right into him, judging by all the blood coming out of his mouth, and the spreading stain of it coming from his chest. The man had taken the shot for Alfred. His life instead of a stupid American wandering around at 2:00am in Moscow.

"ой' was what the injured man said. He repeated it in English for Alfred's benefit. "Ouch"

Alfred just continued to stare in horror, as the man fell to the ground, and _died_. Right in front of the intended target. The mafia man just continued to grin, then cocked and aimed the gun again. This time, he would not miss. Alfred didn't even blink. He was in shock of what he had just seen.

"No one to save you this, time _заблудшей овце_" the man sneered.(2)

Then, something extraordinary occurred.

The man, that had previously taken the shot, and died for Alfred, _twitched_. Like, the whole body shuddered. And slowly, he rose up, fully alive, and began to hack. And low and behold, up came the bullet that had been inside the guy. The man glanced at it and smiled up at the killer. Said killer gasped, dropped the gun, turned heel, and ran away. The 'dead' man turned and faced Alfred for a second time. This time, he smiled. The blood was still there, on his clothing, and a dried blood trail ran down the side of his mouth. And he was _smiling_ at Alfred. He held out his hand to obviously pull Alfred from his current position on the street. Still in a daze, Alfred grabbed the hand. Under the leather glove, something did not feel right. When Alfred grasped it, the man grimaced. Something then seemed to shift, then snap into place. When Alfred was on his feet, did the man finally speak.

"привет, there! Sorry there, my hand must have broken when I fell, what you felt was my dislocated thumb snap into place. Are you okay?"

Alfred's face had turned an unhealthy shade of green. That was just too much information. Who was this guy, anyways?

Alfred spoke up suddenly, "Who- no, what happened? Dude, you died, then came back!"

The man, who by the way, was extremely tall (even more so than Alfred himself) blinked, then his eyes lit up.

"Oh! So I did die, huh? I couldn't tell whether I passed out, or my heart actually stopped beating that time! Yeah, what occurred is that whenever I am physically harmed, I instantly heal. Even if I am shot, per say, even if it hits something vital, I die, then come back to life. Though, I do believe that if you shoot me through the head, I am truly dead. I have never tried it though. Also, if I am pushed to my physical or emotional limits, I , uh, let's say _snap_…"

He trailed off with that, Alfred couldn't believe it. So, in simple terms, this was an immortal man, who had issues with staying alive.

"What's your name?" Alfred was still slightly shaky from the whole life/death encounter.

"My name's Ivan, if you really wished to know. By the way, don't go back to that hostel. The man followed you from there."

Alfred managed to mumble a sentence about going to the wrong place at the wrong time. Ivan cocked his head in interest.

"Well, if you need a place to stay, I guess you can stay with me… If that's okay with you? I can protect you, for whatever the mafia is after you for. I really am a good protector."

Alfred gave a simple nod to show his answer. Ivan smiled back, and turned and walked away, motioning for Alfred to follow.

Looked like Alfred's stay in Russia just got longer...

~~~pasta~~~

**(1) Yeah, what he says is the thing right below it**

**(2) Goodbye in Russian**

**I know you want to. I see that look in your eye... (shut up, I am not France) you really want to so:**

**REVIEW! REVIEW! R-E-V-I-E-W! REVIEW!**

**Thank you for your splendid cooperation**


	2. Lost

**-flops over dead-**

**Yes, I stayed up till 3:26 am (Moscow time) doing this, with an exam tomorrow. Was this a great idea? **

… **probably not, BUT I did finish, it, and that is what counts in the long run, right?**

**RIGHT? **

Alfred has doing that awkward power-walk behind Ivan. Good grief, the man could walk faster than Alfred himself! After a mere ten minutes of the fast pace, the odd duo reached an flat complex. Ivan 'walked' up to one of the flats, and unlocked the gate to let himself and Alfred into the initial lobby area. Then, Ivan walked up three flights of stairs to stop outside a door that was, presumably his, and stopped.

"Someone's inside." Ivan whispered to Alfred.

Alfred, still trying to cope with the whole shooting incident, just kind of nodded.

"How do you…uh…_know _this, exactly"

"They are hiding in my bedroom, under the bed. Oh yes, I have sensitive hearing, too, by the way" Ivan gave a smile, that was slightly pained.

"Uhunm…"

Ivan shrugged, then almost like answering himself replied, "I didn't choose this path, you know."

"What?" Alfred looked up from the oh-so-interesting-spot-on-the-floor, to focus on the equally-interesting-doorknob.

"Does the path choose the walker, or the walker the path? I opt for the first, of course. I would have loved to have lived a normal life, but no. Instead, I got my entire childhood wiped out of existence, and got this…this…_thing_ in my spine. Then, I was forced to… Let's leave this for another time, shall we? Anyways, I shall go in first, and you can just follow along, since you can die." Ivan seemed to calm down, smiled again to himself, and unlocked and opened the door. He seemed to head in the general direction of the (supposed) bedroom to deal with the man that was in there. Alfred ghosted along behind him, already knowing in his mind the outcome of the man versus Ivan.

As Ivan entered the bedroom, and Alfred just peeked in through the door. Ivan flopped onto the bed, and sighed dramatically, almost over doing it. _Almost_. Alfred could just barely make out the outline of the man underneath the bed, as the man readied to leap on top of Ivan. Ivan rolled his eyes before closing them to look like he was asleep.

Instantly, the man leaped onto Ivan, pulling out what looked like a long knife. Ivan faked surprise and gave a genuine gasp as the knife went into his stomach. The man then chose to leave the knife there and smiled as he stood up, and dusted off his hands, believing the hard part was done.

"This is just a favour from your little Mafia friends. Next time, stay out of the way from your sister. Of course, there won't be a next time for you." The man gave a dark chuckle.

_He is so wrong_, thought Alfred. Then, he realized something truly horrific as the man jumped out the window. The knife was still embedded in Ivan, and Alfred had no idea whether Ivan could, uh, repair himself with the knife stuck in him… and no one else was around to pull it out. Ivan was passed out, or dead (again). And for obvious reasons, he could not simply take Ivan to a hospital. What would they say when as soon as the knife was pulled out, and he just healed up, no stitches needed? So, it seems it was up to Alfred to pull it out.

Alfred slowly walked to the bed as if he was in a dream. Ivan didn't so much as twitch. _Was this a good or bad sign?_ Alfred asked himself. Finally, Alfred was standing right over Ivan. _Should he pull it out? Or would Ivan want him to leave it in? He had mentioned that he had wanted to be normal, but did he mean it? So soon in life? Ivan was a true freak, a monster, if you would. He wasn't normal, along with something in his back… Would this mean saving the world from a menace such as Ivan from being the unstoppable force, or would he save Ivan from being a lab rat?_ Such thoughts swirled around his head until he saw something on a bookshelf by Ivan's bedside. It appeared to be journal of sorts. Grateful for anything to distract him from thinking about this… issue, he sank to the floor, and opened the book to a random page. It read the following;

_**June 29**__**th**__** sometime close to midnight**_

_**Greetings Diary,**_

_**I believe I just saw something different today. I was near the train station today, when I saw this complete stranger jump off the train from Ukraine, looking completely flustered. I know this man special though, not just by the fact that he is being followed by the mafia. I need to follow this man, though for lack of reason. Around him, I feel as if I am truly alive again. Even the Dog subsides. He is like my antidote to the madness. I need him more than anyone else now. Our fates are intertwined…**_

Alfred stopped reading right there. Without even thinking, he knew the man was him. He was the only guy who got off at that stop on the train. _He was the antidote to the madness_. What that mean? Alfred shook his head to clear his thoughts. Taking his time he stood up and faced the bed. Ivan was still unconscious, or dead, and the knife still in his stomach. Alfred sighed, and put his hand on the hilt of the sword, and tugged. He would be Ivan's hero, and keep him alive.

Again, Alfred gave a jerk to the sword. This seemed to be getting nowhere. The sword was not budging. It was not coming out, no matter how much he tugged and pulled. _Dammit_. Finally, Alfred stood up, and used the last of his strength to stand up and pull with all his strength. For a moment, nothing happened.

Then, slowly, the sword slid out with a little wet _shick_. Alfred just collapsed with fatigue right on top of Ivan and closed his eyes, panting heavily. He had gotten it out (A/N: shut up you perved people!).

For a few minutes, nothing occurred. Then, a heartbeat restarted beneath him, and the breathing picked up. Another minute, and Ivan reopened his eyes.

"_Get off_." Were the first words that came out of Ivan's mouth. Alfred looked at him strangely. That _did not_ sound like Ivan. The light, child-like voice was still there, but there was something dark and menacing underneath. Something was up…

"What? Dude, I just killed my strength for you, can't I rest a little? I don't see what the big rush is..."

The breathing beneath him became restricted, and the heartbeat quickened.

"Get off… unless you… have… a death wish…" Ivan managed to gasp out.

Alfred rolled off at once. Ivan bolted off the bed. For a minute, he appeared to try to run somewhere, but his legs would just not hold him up. With a moan, he curled up at the foot of the bed, shaking violently and gasping for breath. Alfred became extremely confused. This had not happened the last time. Was something wrong with how Alfred had pulled the knife out?

After a few minutes, though, the breathing became less ragged, and Ivan managed to sit up with his knees to his chest. Every now and then a great tremor ran through his body. Finally, Ivan managed to open his eyes again, and let his legs down.

"Alfred… what colour are my eyes?"

"What!" Alfred looked up in surprise.

"What colour are my eyes. Believe it or not, it is important. Please, what colour are they?"

Alfred jumped off the bed to stare into the other man's eyes. What Alfred found was a surprise. They were the most brilliant shade of purple he had ever seen. It was if tiny violets had bloomed, then were frosted over in shards of ice. Alfred found himself staring into the depths of purple.

"So, what colour are they?" Ivan asked to break the silence that consisted Alfred staring deeply into his eyes.

"… Purple…" replied Alfred with wonder.

Ivan coughed, and broke the gaze. "Alfred, for future reference, if my eyes ever have any form of red in them, stay away. Got it?"

Alfred nodded his reply. What was wrong with Ivan? _I really feel out of the loop_. Alfred sighed internally. What was with all this awkwardness? First he was followed from Ukraine, then was almost shot, except this undead guy his age took it for him. Now that same guy almost lost it right in front of him.

He sighed, then for the first time, looked around at his surroundings. Ivan's flat was a fairly decent size. Everything was white (besides the bed, which was stained crimson from the blood), though, and nothing personal was lying around. It was as if no one lived here in the first place. There weren't even any pictures. Alfred stood up to get a better look at his surroundings.

After Alfred left the room, Ivan gave a mental sigh. He had been _so close_ to losing it. If Alfred had not pulled that sword out, Ivan easily could have slipped into a comatose state, and the Dog would have had free reign. Again. Alfred could easily ended up in several pieces strung out across the room. That man had no idea how lucky and smart he was. Also, Alfred seemed to get over the initial shock of the dying/living idea. That was quick, comparing to the other person who had known his secret. It had taken her 5 weeks to even emerge from her room, let along even talk to him. What was different about Alfred?

**Yes! I finally finished!~ I really need to get more sleep, though.**

**Meh.**

**Okay, people! Initial message:**

**You want to review. You really, really want to. **_**I know you do.**_

**Do it! (shut up)**


	3. Past

**Chapter 3.1 It is WAY too long to fit in here in 1 chapter, so I am breaking it up into sections.  
**

** Well, I am on a roll for such a sleep-deprived person. It's currently 1:34am here. Read and be happy I can last this long. **

**Eh. Well, at least it is the weekend, now. No stupid exams…**

…**except for that one on tomorrow…**

**Screw studying ^_^**

Alfred wandered around Ivan's flat, inspecting for signs of life. All he found was; a toothbrush, toothpaste, a closet full of coats , identical to the one Ivan was wearing currently, (but minus the blood), and some drawers of clothes. Everything else was the same. White, emotionless, and lifeless. There was only one room left, and the door was closed. As Alfred reached out to put his hand on the door.

"Don't open that one. You would not like to know what is inside." The voice was right by his ear, causing Alfred to jump and emit a stream of curses. Ivan was standing directly behind him, smiling once again.

"Although…" Ivan seemed to consider something before continuing, "Only go in there when I… my eyes turn red, and lock yourself in there. I have a key somewhere…" Ivan paused as he dug through his pockets in search of said key. Finally, he pulled it out, and handed it to Alfred.

"Whatever I say, or do, _do not_ give me this key. Ever" Ivan had a dead serious look in his eye. Alfred stared back, looking into the violet sea, and slowly nodded. Ivan resumed his little smile-fest.

Suddenly, Alfred seemed to remember something.

"Umm… Ivan? Can we… talk?" Alfred timidly came about the question, not knowing what to expect from Ivan

"Sure, but about what?"

From the look Alfred gave him, Ivan made a highly educated guess.

"Oh. Yes, of course. Follow me."

They approached the small kitchen/dining room area, and sat across from each other at the circular table provided via Ivan. For a while they just stared at each other. Alfred was the one to make the first move.

"So… what happened? How did you end up like this?" Alfred prompted.

"Ah. I guess I shall begin with my past. When I was younger, I woke up in this bright area. I had no idea who I was, or where I was. It was just all white. That's all I remember…"

_Flashback (Ivan's POV):_

_I came to slowly. It was white, oh so white. After a while, I moved out of my spread-eagled position on the floor, to stand up. At that moment, a girl my age with light purple eyes entered the room. She wore a large grin plastered on her face._

"_Oh good! You finally woke up. I am so happy you did. We really did put a lot of effort into synchronizing you with your Dog. I really did not wish for all our hard work to go to waste…"_

_I looked at her blankly. What is she talking about? What's a Dog? Who is she? I voiced the last question out loud._

"_Oh dear, I forgot to introduce myself!" She giggled slightly before continuing. "I am Natalya Braginski, or Number 014120112251_** (1)**_, but you can call me Natalya. From now on, you are my older brother!"_

_I then voiced my second question. "Who am I?"_

_Again, Natalya laughed. "You are Ivan Braginski, or Number 0922114." I nodded, not really knowing how to answer. Natalya smiled in response. Then, she perked up, as if she had heard something. The next time, I heard it, too. It was a girl, gagged and screaming, coming towards us through the door on the side of this room._

_After a brief silence, the door opened, revealing the girl, who was led in by two men with purple eyes. She was led a few feet from me. The two men, then turned and left, with Natalya following. At the last minute, she turned around._

"_Consider this your first test. You know what to do."_

"_No, not exactly…" I trailed off. I really did not get it._

_Natalya's smile widened to a cat-like grin._

"_Kill her." Natalya flicked her hair, and left. "If you do, I will love you forever."_

_I stared at the door, then turned back to girl. She was quite pretty. She was… graced… with a rack from the gods, and had white blond hair, and light blue eyes. She stood there looking at me, wide-eyed, too frightened to move. I stupidly stared back. It could have been seconds, or minutes, until the girl said something that could not really be heard from under the gag. I automatically stepped forward to take off the gag. She automatically stepped back. I attempted to smile, and reassure her. It turned out more as a grimace. _

"_I just want to untie your gag so you can talk. I cannot understand what you just said…" She still looked petrified, but allowed me to take it off. She supposedly repeated what she had said earlier._

"_Brother? What did you… what happened to you? " She trailed off, looking straight at me. Since when did I have a sister? I couldn't remember anymore. Something in my neck gave a painful __**twinge**__. I scratched at it, only to discover I could not. A strip of metal blocked it._

_I gave a whimper of surprise, and once again felt the back of my neck. There was a piece of metal welded onto the skin. The more I touched it, I realized that in fact, it was not just welded to the skin, it was also bolted to my spine. I looked up at the girl again._

"_What is this?" I asked, now starting to panic myself._

"_I-I… don't know. I thought you knew…" She looked to the ground. Still panicking, I continued._

"_Where are we? What am I supposed to do?" I must have frightened her again, since she began to back up._

"_I have no idea! Don't ask me! I was knocked out, then brought down here!" She sniffled a bit._

_That was all we had time for, since the door reopened, though this time, it was just Natalya. She just gave another one of her smiles. Then, she proceeded to pull out a knife out of some hidden compartment._

"_I see you have not done what you were required to do. Time's up!" With that, she threw the knife directly at the girl. Then, I realized something. I could easily see the knife flying through the air, as if it were moving in slow motion. Something came over me (pity?) and I plucked the knife out of the air, before it hit the girl. Natalya now gave more of a grimace than a grin._

"_Oh! You became connected, didn't you? Silly little Ivan! You should know better than befriend mortals! If you can't do it, I will do it for you!" With that, she ran and leaped into the air with inhuman speed. She was too fast, even for my eyes. So I did the only thing I could do._

_I killed the girl myself (humanely, of course) before Natalya could torture her to death. She gasped and fell, dead to this this world. Natalya suddenly appeared by my side, and gave me a very tense smile._

"_That was very bad of you. Now, I will have to call __**Winter**__ out of you!" She giggled. I tensed. What did she just say?_

_With that, she turned, and left the room. I turned my back to her, sick of Natalya's very face. I did not see when she suddenly turned and stabbed me with another knife, directly in the back._

_I fell to the ground, gasping in pain, blood going everywhere. Natalya smiled again, a gave a cheery, "Have fun!" She left. I was in so much pain, too much to deal with. That is when I first felt it. A great, cold pressure against my mind, and body. Choking, I could not even see anymore. Just as suddenly as it came, it appeared to leave, except, that I still could not see, I could not feel the pain of the wound, and I was floating in this sea of black. At first, I thought I had simply passed out. But that was before I came to._

_Time elapse:_

_When I woke up, I knew that I had not simply 'passed out'. All around me, there were bodies, and blood. All brutally mutilated, limbs ripped off, bite marks everywhere. I looked down at my hands. They were stained crimson with blood. As I further inspected myself, I saw I was practically coated in the vile substance. Then, I reached my conclusion. I had done this. I had murdered all of these people with only my hands and teeth. I fell, shaking, to the ground. Tears fell from my face. These too, were also tinged pink. _

_That was when Natalya entered the room with a genuine smile on her face. She ran, and threw her arms around me. _

"_I am so proud of you!" Natalya whispered in my ear. " Together, we build an army together. Then, we can be the indestructible force that can crush everyone! We will be tyrants of a new world!" I hung there, limp in her crushing embrace. She continued, "__**Winter**__ is really strong, isn't he? Your eyes are the most brilliant shade of purple, now! Is he nice? Because I know that my __**Armageddon**__ is a bit of a pain sometimes…" She looked at me expectantly._

_I decided to play along. "He's quiet… but well behaved. A true gentleman." Natalya laughed. "No really, how is he? You can talk to him you know. Just touch the collar!" Hesitantly, I did as she said. Immediately, I felt that cold presence there, pressuring my mind. I gasped as I felt a low stream of words enter my mind. With each word, came a blast of pain. I turned to Natalya, shocked. She just laughed._

"_I see yours is actually very well behaved! Just remember, don't let anyone else touch you collar, for __**Winter**__ might just decide to come out!" She giggled, and kissed my cheek. "We will have great time together!" With that, she left the room once more._

_Time Elapse:_

_So over the four years that I was there, I learned the ways of Natalya. She was truly a masochist at heart. I put through many more tasks like the first, and over time, I learned to control __**Winter**__. But truly, I was planning escape. From about halfway through the second year, when I was forced to kill a child, I made up my mind. I would destroy this whole facility, Natalya included. Every night, I planned on how I would do this. Since I was now in my fourth year, I knew the whole area by heart. Also, I knew where the bombs were kept. So far, my grand idea was to place the bomb in Natalya's sleeping quarters, then detonate it. Then, as lay back on my bed, I accidentally touched the collar. I felt that familiar cold wash over me, and __**Winter's**__ consciousness washed over me. As he filtered thru my mind, a heard him chuckling about my plans._

"_**You really are not a bright one, are you now?"**__ He chuckled again._

_I moaned, and turned over. "Shut up, and stay out of my plans, would you, __da__?" I sighed, __**Winter**__ could be quite persistent at some things, usually my thoughts._

"_**Did you not even wish to hear my proposal to you?"**__**Winter**__ sighed. Again, he rubbed against my mind._

"_Ugh, fine if you really want to…" I trailed off, trying to be disinterested to ward him off._

"_**I want to help you. I will take over, and kill ALL of them myself. It's so fun that way!"**__ He gave a little yip._

_Now I actually began to listen. He did have a rather good point. He was one of the best killers out there. Well, the best in this settlement/complex__, which was the only one ever spoken and heard of. I then began to wonder why, though. And naturally, he read my thoughts and responded._

"_**Do you have any idea how much I hate being cooped up here? Armageddon is the only other strong one here, it is always a repeat. Kill and sleep. No suprises, or anything out of the ordinary. I am getting quite bored here. I want to see if there is more fun… elsewhere…" Winter**__ trailed off, thinking probably about elsewhere. _

_I sighed too. I was also bored and sick of Natalya and this white walled prison. I was the only experiment left besides Natalya, __**Winter**__ and I had killed the rest a while ago. Also, Natalya's new thing was to try and get me to marry her, even though we are supposed to be siblings. It was scaring me, badly. So I agreed._

_The plan was for the next morning, when Natalya came to unlock my cell (yes, I was in a cell), __**Winter**__ would come out and kill her first to get that over with. Then, he would destroy the rest of the place as he saw fit. It could work…_

_Time Elapse:_

_It was over before I knew it. I was on the streets of some town (which I now know is Moscow), with a burning hole behind me. I was finally free, and Natalya was dead. Over time I adapted to the world around me, and learned the necessary gestures, and language to fit in._

"…So, that is where I am today." Ivan sighed as he finished up his summary of his past. Alfred paid attention through the whole thing, and now he had goose-bumps from hear about Natalya.

He did not even notice the sniper in the window across from Ivan's flat's window take aim. Nor did he see the bullet fly through the air as the shot was fired. But he did see when the window shattered, and once again, Ivan was shot in the back. The gunman quickly ducked, and ran, leaving Alfred just to wait for Ivan to pop up again.

He did almost immediately. He gave an extremely big smile, and leaned across the table.

"Hey Alfred…"

"Huh?"

"Let's play a game…"

Ivan's eyes then snapped open to reveal purple eyes slowly turning crimson red.

"Let's play a game!"

…**AND I left it on a cliff hanger. Hahaha! I feel so evil now!**

**~ I'm sorry, I have been chugging tea now for the past 2 hours to get this done. **

**I…can't… stay awake…~**

**I am finally going to bed! Can't wait!**

**Anyways, REVIEW!**

**(please)~**


	4. Winter

**Yeah, it's chapter 3.2. **

**Joy. Fruitcakes.**

**Sorry, kind of cranky, just woke up, after sleeping for a whole day. Can't you just tell how much I LOVE school?**

**Eh, well… I do, but I just kind of... a bit… tired…**

**Ugh. Maybe I should change my username to The0Russian0Insomniac**

**Tell me what you think. ^_^**

Alfred stared back. Those eyes… so red… like fresh blood… The spell was broken when a pink tongue poked between pale lips, and licked them. It was only then that Alfred ran from the room at top speed. _Where to go? Where to go?_ thought Alfred as he raced down the hallway. Then, he saw it. The door. When Ivan, the real one, had told him to go if it was ever like this. Quickly, Alfred thrust the door open and closed it firmly behind him. Then, he turned to face the interior of the room. At last, he knew what to do.

In the centre was a large cage, with a rather big piece of metal inside. Immediately, Alfred ran to the cage, and jumped in (since it was also slightly elevated) and closed the door. It closed with a satisfying click (locked) , and Alfred immediately curled up in the middle of the floor, forgetting that he was lying on the other piece of metal. _What happened? What set Ivan off? _That was Alfred had time to think, as the door entering the room was promptly blasted off its' hinges, as The-Thing-That-Was-Once-Ivan entered, wearing a demonic grin. The eyes were almost completely crimson, with just a shard of purple in the left one. **Winter**Ivan advanced towards the cage. About 5 feet away, he stopped. A shudder passed thru his body, and **Winter**Ivan leaped into the air. Alfred just closed his eyes. A great Wham! from above symbolized that **Winter**Ivan had landed on top of the cage. The whole cage shook violently from side to side. Alfred cringed on impact. Then suddenly, the cage stopped shaking. Slowly, Alfred opened on of his eyes. Ivan was leaning against the bars on the cage, panting.

"Alfred… man, that as close… it's okay you can come out now." Something made Alfred twitch.

"…How do I… know that you're back to normal? Open your eyes." Ivan smirked.

"Why would I do that? It's obviously just me! Just give me the key so I can unlock the cage." Ivan gave a little smile.

And Alfred believed him. For a minute.

"Open your eyes!" Alfred now demanded. Finally Ivan opened them. They were still blood-red. **Winter**Ivan gave another wicked smile.

"Almost got you!~" Then, **Winter**Ivan just vanished. It was almost as if it was just Alfred in the room. Suddenly, there was a clang directly below Alfred, who immediately jumped to his feet. Apparently, the new master plan was to infiltrate from beneath. That had also failed. _What is this cage even made of?_ Alfred thought. Suddenly, **Winter**Ivan was next to the bars again, staring at him as if he was a piece of steak or something. Alfred cringed.

"Heh. I will admit. You are quite smart to be in the cage, but at the same time, slightly stupid as well." **Winter**Ivan continued to gaze at him. "You haven't even used the sword on me yet!"

_Huh? What? _ Then Alfred looked down at what he had previously been curled up on. It was a huge sword. It was almost the length of his arm (and he had long arms). It was a fairly simple in design, but the was something on the blade. On it was tiny, etched symbols, definitely not written in English, that glittered in the dim light. The whole blade was also a metallic, acidic red colour. _The same shade of Ivan's eyes…_ Alfred trailed off, still examining the sword.

**Winter**Ivan grinned. He then smirked, and replied to some other voice. "No, of course not! Why would I do that? I am having WAY too much fun!~" Then, he seemed to then talk to Alfred again.

"Like the sword? I know. It is quite unique…" then something seemed to compel him to mumble the rest. "The only thing that can kill me…"

At that, Alfred looked up quickly. _What?_ What was so special about this sword that could kill him? Alfred looked up just in time to see **Winter**Ivan place his hands on two of the bars on the outside of the cage, and press. And slowly, the bars began to bend away from each other, just like in the movies.

**Winter**Ivan looked up at Alfred, grinned (by now his teeth were sharpened into dagger-like points), and resumed his work on the bars. They were now almost far apart for **Winter**Ivan to step in. And just like that, **Winter**Ivan crumpled to the ground. He gasped, and attempted to get up again, just to be crunched by that same force again. This time he stayed down, as if he were passed out, for about a minute. Finally, **Winter**Ivan gave a little shudder, and lay still.

Alfred waited for a good minute for him to get up again. It never happened. Slowly, Alfred managed to crawl out of the cage and over to Ivan's body. He wasn't even breathing. Slowly, Alfred put two hesitant fingers on Ivan's cheek. The body underneath gave a great shudder. _Oh god… I am dead now…_ though Alfred as the body began to propel itself upwards. Alfred jumped up, and tried to run back to the cage, even though it was busted now. _The sword!_ Maybe that could work, except, for some reason, he just couldn't bring himself to even thinking about killing Ivan. All hopes were crushed when Alfred tripped himself and went sprawling across the concrete floor. _Play dead! _was the next thought that came into being in his head. Alfred restricted his breathing, and went limp. Personally, he thought that he was quite good at playing dead. Behind him, heard the steady, deliberate footsteps. Then there was a hand on his head.

"_O __Bozhe__…" _ (1) came a soft voice from above him, followed by ragged breathing, and much coughing.

"Alfred? Alfred! **Winter!** What did you do! You will pay!" That was stopped by another fit of coughs. Then, it finally occurred to Alfred. That was Ivan in control, not **Winter**. Immediately, Alfred opened his eyes, and saw moist red-violet eyes staring back at him. The eyes were getting more violet by the second, but Alfred could still see the red lingering.

"Alfred! You're alive!~ I was so worried!" Ivan gave him a bone-crushing embrace, in which Alfred could not even breathe. The pressure on Alfred's lungs only stopped when Ivan erupted into another set of coughs.

"A-are you alright?" asked a nervous Alfred.

"Hmm?~ Oh yes, I'm fine. This happens every time he comes out." Ivan then gave another smile. The teeth were still pointed, giving Ivan the appearance of a shark. (2)

"Your teeth…" Alfred trailed off, not really knowing how to approach the subject.

"Yes. I have teeth. What about them?" Ivan stared at him blankly.

"They are…uh… sharp…" Talk about awkward conversations.

Ivan's eyes widened. Apparently he had no idea that had even happened. Slowly, Ivan ran his tongue over the newly pointed teeth, and gave a worried frown.

"… How long was I out for, exactly?" Ivan approached the subject cautiously.

"I don't know, I didn't have a clock with me, but it was for quite I while."

Ivan closed his eyes, and let out a shaky sigh.

"So… I see you met **Winter**."

"Mhn." was all Alfred said to the statement.

A moment of silence reigned between then for a while. Ivan was the one to finally break it, by pushing himself off the floor, with Alfred quickly following suit. Ivan walked to the kitchen, and went over the mini-fridge.

"Would you like anything to eat? It's near breakfast time, I suppose…" Ivan looked up to Alfred, since he was just standing there, looking at Ivan dumbly.

"Ahh… yes that would be nice. Also is there anywhere I can sleep? I am kinda getting tired…" Ivan gave back a small smile.

"Yes. There is a guest bedroom down the hallway, but is it okay if I sleep with you? I did not have a chance to get new bed sheets…" Ivan frowned, remembering the blood.

"Yeah, sure. That would be fine." Alfred suddenly became embarrassed about something, and looked away.

"What is it?" Ivan was clueless.

"I-It's nothing… it's just that we're two grown men, and sleeping together in a bed would be…" Alfred then blushed, newly embarrassed.

"Oh." Ivan was now also embarrassed. Alfred still decided to continue.

"Yeah, since I'm not exactly… attracted… to women." Ivan looked up.

"Me neither." Alfred decided to return Ivan's look. They were both blushing.

Ivan sighed. "Here, I will stick to my side of the bed, while you stick to yours. I will not touch you while you sleep."

Alfred nodded. Yeah, that could work. He then watched as Ivan made them both breakfast. It was eggs and toast, nothing special. They both sat down at the table, this time, Ivan facing the now blown-out window. Right before Alfred began to eat, Ivan started hacking again. Finally, up came the bullet, and a little bit of blood. Ivan simply grimaced, and started to eat. Alfred looked at the bullet for a while, then followed suit.

After eating, they both took their plates to the sink, and went to the guest bedroom. Alfred picked his side, and jumped on it, falling asleep right on top of the covers. Ivan chose to calmly walk to the opposite side, and get under the covers, before he too passed out. Finally, the night (well, now day) was calm.

For now.

**Yeah! Done with 3.2!**

**I want to go to bed, too, now, but I still have to do 3.3 **

**TT_TT**

**Meh. Happy Thanksgiving to all you Americans!  
(Hopefully I got the date right)**

**(You know the drill.) Review for the insomniac so they can get some sleep!~**

**Thanks!**


	5. Captured

**Finally, the last part! You have no idea how happy I am right now.**

**-jumps away from the computer and does a happy dance-**

**Yeah, just slightly happy…**

**ANYWAYS, enjoy the wonderful series of events… **

**If you can call it that. Meh.**

Alfred awoke, completely groggy. After confirming that it was 3:24 in the afternoon, he groaned and rolled over. And promptly smacked into a rock. Or something that for all purposes, felt like a rock. The rock turned out to be Ivan. That would explain a lot, as in why he was in Russia, not Poland, and why he was not in the youth hostel, and sleeping with another guy, in bed, in some random flat. Looking again at Ivan, Alfred judged that he was still asleep.

Ivan's looked so sweet when sleeping. His platinum blonde hair was swept to the side of his face, and a slight smile graced his lips. His whole face gave a look of contentment, and joy. A slight light shaft fell across his cheek, giving the impression he had a white tiger-stripe there. Suddenly, Ivan's face winced with a bit of pain. Alfred gave a little jump himself, but then Ivan's face relaxed again, and Alfred relaxed too. Then, Ivan's eyes flashed open. There they were, that deadly shade of crimson. It was no longer Ivan, it was **Winter**.

_Oh god, oh god oh-_ Alfred chanted over and over in his head. Instincts kicked in, and Alfred attempted to jump off the bed, only to get tangled in the bed sheets, and plow face-first into the floor with an unceremonious _whump_, with his feet still tangled in the bed sheets. The voice drifted to him from above.

"You will relax, da? All I wish to do is talk…" **Winter**Ivan was still on the bed, looking down at him, with some twisted form of amusement. Alfred stared back, then slowly nodded. **Winter** seemed serious about something. **Winter**Ivan lent him a hand, which Alfred hesitantly accepted. In one swoop, Alfred found himself on the bed, sitting up, facing (an also sitting up,) **Winter**Ivan. After looking long and hard at Alfred,** Winter**Ivan spoke first.

"I guess… that you are alright… for a mortal." **Winter**Ivan gave a smirk, as if that was the closest thing to a compliment Alfred would get.

"Umm… what am I alright for, exactly?" Alfred looked down, clueless.

"Oh. You don't know you? Man, I have a stupid, shy host for not telling, and even stupider prey for no knowing." **Winter**Ivan gave a dry chuckle, then continued. "Well, since he probably would rather die than tell you, I have taken it upon myself to tell you.

Ivan loves you, got it, mortal?"

Alfred just gaped at **Winter**Ivan for a few minutes, his mouth flapping open and closed.

"..You look like a fish." **Winter**Ivan decided that was necessary comment to make at that time. After that, Alfred seemed to recover.

"He _whats_ me? Woah!" Alfred looked up to stare into **Winter**Ivan's eyes. _Oh god, he's serious!_

" Yeah, he does, you idiot. How many times should I say it to get it thru your thick skull? I feel as if you people have only gotten stupider thru the years. Plus, I am only here to warn you." **Winter**Ivan looked at him with slight distaste.

"Hang on, warn me about what?" panic began to reappear in the American's eyes.

"The consequences." **Winter**Ivan wrinkled his nose.

"The consequences… of what?" Alfred tried to get an explanation out of him.

"Just what happens if you break my host's heart. Believe it or not, I do actually like him, too. That's why I never let him watch when I killed people. It would hurt him, in his heart. I managed to kill his parents, and all his other real siblings, but never told him, because it would hurt him. That's why I offered to help him get out of that place. To preserve his sanity. That is why we are so strong. That is what makes us different from all the other experiments. Unlike the others who could care less about their human's lives, I cared. And that has made all the difference between living and dying for him. For us." **Winter**Ivan regarded Alfred with a calculating glance, then looked down.

"All I want you to know it that if you break his heart, I promise, that I will hunt you down, even if I have to go all the way to America. Then, I will torture you for ten days, then force you to die in three." **Winter**Ivan then looked up, and once again glared at Alfred.

"Do you understand?"

Alfred nodded a definite 'yes'. **Winter**Ivan gave him a feral grin in response. Then, he began to lie down, then quickly sat up again.

"One last thing!" **Winter**Ivan said. With a flash, he was gone. In a second, he reappeared behind Alfred, took off the American's shirt, and pulled out a knife. Alfred shrieked, and tried to pull away, but **Winter**Ivan held fast, and frowned.

"I just need to mark you for… future… purposes." **Winter**Ivan gave a (was that _sad_?) smile. Again he raised the knife.

"Don't worry, it won't hurt… much…" And with a few swift motions, some sort of design was carved into Alfred's back. And **Winter** had lied. It had hurt. A lot.

"Oh god. I forgot, you guys bleed everywhere. How messy!" Again, **Winter**Ivan seemed to vanish into nothingness. A second later, he was back, armed with bandages, and rubbing alcohol. Quickly, with some kind of knowledge, **Winter**Ivan quickly bound Alfred up.

"Don't you ever tell Ivan that I did this, either. Who knows what he'll do. That may also result in some form of… punishment." **Winter**Ivan smiled again, almost to himself.

Then, **Winter**Ivan lay back down in the same that he had been in when Ivan was actually sleeping. Alfred made an educated guess that **Winter** would recede and Ivan would be left, still sleeping. Alfred, then pulled his shirt back on, then lay down, too, and turned to face the wall. There was a cough from behind him, so Alfred wearily turned over. It was still** Winter**.

"Oh, by the way… I am…er…sorry… about earlier. I was just testing you, so see if you were… worthy of Ivan. So… sorry…" **Winter**Ivan looked, embarrassed like never before.

"It's okay…" Alfred mumbled back, not really knowing what else to say. Who knows what would happen if he rejected.

"Good." was **Winter**Ivan said before closing his eyes. Ivan's body gave that little jolt, and went back to the regular Ivan sleep mode. After a minute of watching that pretty face, Alfred too, fell into a peaceful rest.

Time Elapse:

The second time Alfred woke up, Ivan was not in bed. Deciding that he was probably somewhere around the house, Alfred got up, and decided to look for him. After a few minutes of fruitless searching, Alfred (finally, the stupid American that he was) noticed the note right on the kitchen table. It read;

_Alfred:_

_I just need to get some food and replace the glass door._

_If you wake up before I am home, DO NOT let anyone_

_Into the house. Also, please do not leave the house. You_

_Know what happened the last time you went wandering._

_Love,_

_Ivan ^_^_

_Love? Really?_ He shrugged. Alfred decided to obey the note, which is normally what he would refuse to do. Every time his older brother, Arthur, would leave a note for him (when they lived in England), Alfred chose to do the opposite, just to spite him. But truly, deep down, (as in you would really have to dig for it. Think from the US to China) Alfred really did love him, even though you could even force-feed him his brother's food before he would admit it… Alfred sighed, remembering when he and his brother were younger, and how they would always fight. The memories were hastily pushed away, when there was a knock on the front door. Alfred jumped up, expecting it to be Ivan. Being the American that he was, Alfred did not even pause to look thru the peephole to confirm whether it was Ivan or not. He just opened the door. In fact, it was not Ivan. It looked almost like his sister.

There, in front of him was a rather small girl. She had long, platinum blonde hair, flowing down her back. She wore a navy blue dress, that had a black and white striped apron, that tied in the back. She glared up at Alfred.

"You're not Ivan. Where's Ivan?" She looked up at him, directly into his eyes.

Woah. Her eyes were purple, except lighter, kind of… watery. Just like Ivan's eyes. Wait, could that mean that she's another one? Another Dog? Wait, didn't Ivan say there was another one… what was the name… oh! It was Natalya! Was this Natalya?

"I said, where's Ivan you stupid human! All traces led me to this flat, so where is he?"

For some reason, Alfred felt compelled to lie to this girl.

"I don't know any Ivan… I've never heard of him. Hi! My name's Alfred! I'm an American who just moved in here!" Alfred plastered on his biggest smile yet. He was rewarded with an equally large scowl.

"…When did you move in?" The scowl seemed to lighten a bit. "I'm Natalya by the way." Natalya glared at him as if it were a challenge.

Oh no, it was Natalya, but wait, hadn't she been killed? Ivan had told him so. Unless she survived somehow. Oh god…

"Uhhh… just a few days ago. Why do you ask?" Natalya continued to stare at him.

"That is irrelevant. You smell like him. You know where he is, don't you?" Alfred gulped.

"Tell me! Now!" Natalya ordered. Finally, Alfred found his voice to answer back.

"N-no." Natalya smirked.

"Fine, I'll take you as a hostage." She smirked, and promptly brought her foot up, an kicked him in the temple. Alfred slumped to the floor, bleeding and unconscious. Natalya smirked. That was just plain too easy. Stupid humans. She then slung him over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes (1). It was easy for her especially with her strength and all. Natalya then jumped out the window, and ran at top speed, so fast that they both seemed to disappear.

Ivan was right around the corner, groceries still in his arms. He sank to the ground, and tears silently made lines down his cheeks. He had failed Alfred, twice now. First he had not controlled **Winter**, and almost killed him. Now, Natalya had him as a trap for him. _Why is she still alive?_ After a few minutes of sitting, Ivan made up his mind. He would exchange himself for Alfred, but first, **Winter** had some things to answer.

He walked into the now silent flat, and slammed his head into a wall, then put his hand under the scarf to touch that strip of metal.

"What's going on? Why is she still alive?" Ivan was angry now. A few minutes passed before **Winter **finally answered.

"**She was too… strong. I'm sorry, I could not defeat her. She lives.**" **Winter **gave an unsure answer, not knowing what Ivan would do.

"Why? I am sure you are quite aware that I love him, aren't you?"

"…"

"_Aren't you?_"

"**Yes. I am.**" **Winter** gave a slight sigh. He was painfully aware of that.

Ivan punched the wall, so hard it left a dent in the wall. Two of his fingers were broken, and blood ran down his hand. Like always, it mended within seconds. _Why can't I just be normal?_ Ivan once again proposed that question to his mind. Once again, no answer came back. With a sigh, he bent down, there was only one option, really. Save Alfred, and turn himself in.

He stood, and flitted off in the same direction Natalya had taken. He already knew where she was headed. At least Alfred will now have a chance at life. He was as good as dead, anyways.

**Haha! It's a suicidal Ivan! (no, not really, just kidding.)**

**That is all I have for this chapter. Sorry, it may be a while before I post the next one. **

**~My aunt just got diagnosed with cancer, and has less than a year to live. I am trying to paint a portrait of her before she passes away.~**

**(Yes, I paint, too)  
**

**Anyways, review please!~**


	6. Lab

**So it turns out my aunt has stage 4 pancreatic cancer that has spread into her liver. This kind of cancer is supposed to be excruciatingly painful towards the end, so I have to get this painting done FAST, as the doctors have given her 4 months to live. **

**Hat is why this chapter is so late**

**So… yeah, I also have school tomorrow again. Screw sleep. My Literature teacher will just have to deal with me sleeping in class… again. **

**All nighter is the way to go!~ Enjoy.**

Alfred woke up in an uncomfortable position. His arms and legs were securely locked in large metal contraptions. Even the fingers were separated inside these things. The metal things were then connected to a metal circle. Alfred then realized he was suspended a good metre above the floor. It looked like the only thing that was holding him up was an iron chain from the ceiling. _Wow, they really don't accept escape here, do they?_ Alfred gave a wry thought to himself.

Then, a door that Alfred had not seen before was flung open. Natalya, and some other man who looked to be from some Mediterranean country . The Mediterranean man waited by the door, while Natalya came to right in front of Alfred, and gave a cold glare up at him.

"You're lucky, you know that? Today, you don't have to fight against Sadiq, here today," Natalya nodded towards the Mediterranean man, indicating that he was supposedly Sadiq, before continuing. "You get to fight against someone else. Enjoy it."

With that, she pressed a button that was on a bracelet on her left wrist. The restraints released Alfred in an unceremonious form, and he smacked into the concrete floor. Out of nowhere, Natalya brought out some handcuffs attached to a long chain. Before Alfred could even open his mouth to protest, Natalya had them firmly snapped around his wrists, and jerked the chain, meaning for Alfred to follow her. He wearily followed her out the door into some completely white corridor. After many twists, and turns, and confusing intersections, they emerged into a circular, white room. The only unevenness in the room, was a pale mass on the floor. It seemed to be a pale person, in white clothes, passed out. Alfred then heard the clicking of shoes against to floor behind him. He turned to see Natalya leaving the room. At the last minute, she turned.

"You know what to do. If you do, I promise we will get married… tomorrow at the latest!~ You know I will love you eternally, dear." Natalya chuckled, and left the room.

Ivan's Scenario:

Ivan walked into the place that he still knew like the back of his hand. Absolutely nothing had changed, except for the fact that it was obvious that someone had patched up the walls, as if someone had mauled them down, and burned them. Ivan sighed lightly, knowing who had done that. Onwards he continued, looking into open doorways along the way. Most were bare and held nothing. Then, he saw it. a pale blue light shining under one particular doorway. As a child, it was the one he was never allowed to enter. And he never had. That is, until now, when anger and curiosity got the better of him. Ivan opened the door, and was astounded by what he saw.

There were 10 huge whirring machines that looked like test-tubes with some kind of blue fluid flowing inside. There were about two rows of these, all lined up. Against another wall, was filled with huge monitors and computer screens displaying some form of data. Ivan inched forward to have a better look at one of the screens. On it were about 10 small circles, with one in the top left corner lit up. For some reason, Ivan immediately identified them with to 10 tubes that now stood behind him. There was one that was lit up that drew Ivan's attention. _That should be the one… in the second row, in the corner…_Ivan felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, as he began his slow, deliberate walk over to the selected machine. Unfortunately, Ivan's guess proved to be correct.

Inside, was a man. He seemed to be somewhere in-between life and death. The man was not breathing, but did not show any of the qualities of being particularly dead, either. Approximately 12 tubes were hooked up to him, and went upwards, until the glass distorted them, and Ivan could not see where they were hooked up to. Ivan walked around the machine to observe the man better. He seemed to be from some Mediterranean country, with a strange double hair-curl that defiantly stuck up on the top of his head. Ivan continued his journey around the 'sleeping' man, and stopped cold when he saw the man's neck. Implanted on the man's neck was that painfully familiar strip of metal that also was on the back of his neck. There was one difference between them though. There was no scar-line down his back where the **Spine** was supposed to go. _So he is still… human?_ The idea flashed thru Ivan's head, when an alarm on the machine began to sound.

Ivan looked around frantically. Decisive as always, he skirted up the wall, and latched himself to the ceiling between the tube containing the human-**Dog**, and the corner of the room. Another man entered the room, grumbling under his breath, with a torch. _The lights were off_, Ivan thought. Annoying superhuman eyes. The new person also seemed to be from Mediterranean decent, too. Unlike the one Ivan knew to be the human-**Dog, **this one was quite tall, and broad-shouldered. He lumbered over, and began checking various monitors, than pressed a button on some random control panel. With a _gurgle_, the fluid in the tube drained, and the tubes slipped out of the men's arms, and fell to the floor of the machine. The man inside began to slump down from lack of support, Suddenly, a thin line appeared in the glass, and the glass swung open, _doors!_, and the man who was previously at the control panel rushed over at a speed that was inhuman. _Another Dog?_, and caught the human-**Dog**, before he slumped to the floor and hit his head.

"Just need ta' hook ya' up with some of **Athena** now…" the man mumbled again to himself, unaware that he now had an audience.

Ivan did not think before acting. He jumped down, and grabbed the other **Dog**, and forced him to the floor.

"Don't you…_dare_!" Ivan growled. The man squirmed under his grasp. "You know how it feels, why do it to someone else?" At that the man stopped.

"How what feels?"

"The **Dog**." Ivan deadpanned. "Then… what do you have?"

"Special spine-modified version []2, vertebrae numbers 4,5, and 8."

"You only have part of it…" Ivan stopped to think, and in the process relaxed his grip, and the man pulled away, and jumped up.

"I can still beat a mere mortal like you easily!"

Ivan smiled, knowing the man had no clue as to who he was. Slowly, Ivan also stood up so that he now towered over the man, and took off his scarf. The man's eyes began to widen in realization.

"You said mortal, da?"

And with two long fingers, Ivan leisurely reached up, and touched his own metal strip.

"**Winter**, care to join us?"

Ivan immediately felt the cold move in, followed by loss of sight and that sinking feeling. **Winter** was in control now.

**Winter **opened his newly blood-red eyes to lazily stare at the man. Said man now began to back up. **Winter** chose to leap at the man, and once again pin him face-first to the floor.

"Hmm… You are Sadiq Adnan, da?"

Sadiq attempted to nod, only to have his face crushed into the floor. It was painful, but he knew it would heal fast, thanks to having the 8th vertebrae implanted in him. The **Dog** chuckled.

"Do you know who I am yet?"

"N-no… all I know is that you are…the failed experiment…" Sadiq trailed off.

"Hmn. Yes, I guess I am, in fact. I believe that Ivan and I are the second of two who have fully implanted spines."

Sadiq shuddered, knowing who the other was. Natalya. When she did talk, it was about this man.

"Lemme go, would ya'?" Sadiq growled, then spat on the floor.

"Nyet. I do not think so. Ivan told me to teach you a lesson, so I shall. Did you know that damage done by a **Dog** never fully heals?"

And Sadiq began to yell as **Winter** dug growing claws into his shoulder blades. Sadiq continued to writhe in agony, until suddenly, the claws were gone, and **Winter** was no longer on top of him. Sadiq stood, and looked about. There was no sign of **Winter** anywhere in the room. Deciding it was safe, Sadiq went back over to the man from the machine.

The boss here had allowed him to pick a companion for…something that Sadiq did not know. So he was allowed to return to his 'homeland', some place called Turkey under surveillance. Of course, Sadiq had no idea whether it was or not, all he could remember was waking up here with that stalker-girl, Natalya staring at him. He sighed, then picked up the still-comatose person. Sadiq had to at least put him in the machine to put in at least one piece of **Athena**, or the person he had picked would die, as he had been told. He did, however, remember the day he first saw the other. The bright light beaming down from above, and giving his skin the feeling that he was burning. And he saw him, sleeping in a tree, and when he went over, the man simply opened his dusky green eyes, and stared at him. Sadiq shook his head again, and attempted to bend down and grab the man off the floor. Two things stopped him immediately. First, as soon as he touched the man, the eight puncture-wounds **Winter** had made in his shoulder blades flared to life, and rendered his arms limp victims to the flaming pain. Second, **Winter **stood right behind him, breathing softly into his right ear.

"Apparently, you are blind. I do not think you would want your friend to end up… like me, would you?"

Sadiq shuddered, then attempted to answer.

"No. You see, he has to have at least a piece of-"

"You are not blind, yet you act as if you were. I can easily fix that for you!~"

With that, Sadiq felt the claws that had previously punctured his back, claw deeply across Sadiq's eyes, rendering him blind. The pain was once again unbearable, as Sadiq screamed and fell to the floor in agony. The blood already began to seep thru his fingers as he began to place them over the spot of the pain. All Sadiq could do was lie there, and curl up into a ball, hands still over his eyes. Around him, the room began to fall apart. A little side-thought told him that **Winter** must be destroying the room…Sadiq faded into unconsciousness.

Sadiq was wrong on one point, however. It was not, in fact **Winter** destroying the room, it was Ivan. He had suppressed **Winter**, and when he had stepped back into the room, all he saw was Sadiq once again trying to grab that man. _Some people never quite learn, do they?_ Ivan felt the rage rise in him, and in a crimson haze, he had blinded Sadiq. _Some people deserve to be that way…_ Currently, he was sitting atop a pile of rubble, created out of all the monitors, and machines. Now, he was slightly regretting what he had done. No matter whether he was human, or some hybrid, he was just a pawn. _Just like me…_ Ivan sighed, and winced as the claws began to retract.

"**I think I can help. Touch him."**

"What?" Ivan jumped a little at **Winter**'s presence. "What will you do- "

"**Silence. Just do it, I think I know what to do…"**

Ivan leaped off the pile, and landed lightly next to the unconscious Sadiq, and as **Winter** suggested, touched him. A spark jolted first thru Ivan, and then Sadiq, and as Ivan watched, the blood still pouring out stopped, the skin overlaid that, and it scarred over.

"**He'll live, and 'see' another day." Winter** gave a weary sigh. **"I'm going to sleep. Don't bug me…"** He drifted off.

Ivan sighed. Great, his largest weapon was now exhausted. And he still had to find that wretched girl, and get Alfred away from danger. Before they did…something, like Sadiq and that other man. Panic shot thru him, as he rushed out the hole that used to be a doorway, and into the hallway.

To find that it was blocked by a large, thick steel door. Wildly, Ivan wheeled around, to find yet another blocking any other possible escape routes. _What is…_ Ivan thought, until he heard the subtle hissing of gas entering the room, and the white walls began to sprout growing dark passages. He was unconscious before he hit the floor.

Sadiq's Scenario:

He awoke head reeling, he attempted to get up, but when his body threatened to black out, he settled for sitting. Sighing, he looked down at his hand.

Wait. He. Saw. His. Hand.

_I'm not… blind?_ Immediately he stood, and ignoring the nausea, went searching for some reflective surface. Finally, after a long search, he found part of a tube. He almost screeched at what he saw. He stumbled backwards from the mirror.

Maybe it was better to have been blind after all.

_I'm a monster…_

**Yush. That concludes this chapter. Sorry to end on a cliffhanger/sad part, but I am getting tired, and this is my 5****th**** cup of tea. **

**I have decided to enter Greece/Turkey, or Hercules/Sadiq into this story if you haven't noticed yet. If you did just notice, you must be American. Tell me if this works. Don't worry, I'll write a sequel for them if you guys want me to, da? **

**Reviews are to me, as candy is to a little child…**

**I think that is how it works… meh.**


	7. Escape

**AAHHH!~ Sorry it took so long to finally upload this... I had a bout of laziness, and then eye surgery where I ended up having bandages over both of my eyes... yeah. ANYWAYS, I want to issue a special apology to** ** StarGazer453 for putting up with my PMing, and frantic attempts to get me to update sooner. Sorry!~~**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia. If I did, the show would probably have a bunch of creepy (perverted) other meanings, as well as lots of Yaoi and yuri... heh. (cue nosebleed...) **

Ivan was conscious enough to hear Natalya say that painful command. He groaned and stood up as soon as heard Natalya close the door behind her.

And stared at who was the desired one, Alfred.

There was a moment awkward silence, broken by the American.

"What did Natalya mean, Ivan?"

Ivan simply looked down in shame, and mumbled the answer.

"What?"

"She wants me to kill you..."

He braced himself for the face of disgust, and backing away in horror. But it never occurred. Alfred simply stood up straighter, and looked squarely at Ivan.

"Then do it. It would get you out of trouble, right? That's what heroes are for. And I am one."

Ivan lifted his head, and met the sapphire gaze.

"No. You mean to much to me. I cannot."

Alfred blushed , and stammered, "N-N-No. I m-mean really…"

He broke off as Ivan lifted burning eyes to meet his.

"No. You still mean too much, even if you are a 'hero.'"

And that was when Natalya reentered.

"Ivan~~ Have you-"

She turned, and glared at Alfred.

"Ah. I see you have not disposed of the idiot. In that case, I will do it for you!"

And with that, she disappeared into thin air (to Alfred's eyes). Ivan quickly stepped in front of Alfred, and seemed to grin.

"Natalya, you are simply to easy. I will defeat you with my eyes closed!"

And true to his words, Ivan closed his eyes, and a slight shiver ran up his back. Though Alfred had only known this man for 3 days, he knew Winter was in charge. Out of nowhere, Natalya appeared above Ivan. Winter quickly caught her wrist and began to bend it back. She writhed under the pain and managed to gasp out,

"W-winter! I know you dislike me, but I am positive we could work something

ou-"

SNAP

Winter had fully broken her wrist, and she fell to the floor, limp.

"Call him for me, and tell him I'm... ready."

Winter then turned around to fully face Alfred.

"I believe you will appreciate this..."

Suddenly, Ivan's eyes turned to their usual shade of amethyst. Yet, he did not appear to be in control of his body. So they both watched as one hand grew claws, and promptly sliced open both palms, and pressed together, so that the blood mingled. Then the silence (other than Natalya's whimpers of pain), was broken by Ivan's' scream. He fell to the ground, in evident agony, holding the back of his neck.

One final scream, and all was silent.

Alfred had been so focused on Ivan, that up until now, he could no longer hear Natalya. Of course, now that he felt his windpipe being crushed by two clawed hands, he regretted it.

"Ah! N-Natalya! I can't... breathe!"

"And you think I care?"

Alfred now found himself dying. Black spots began to float into his vision. All the Dog-Natalya did was squeeze tighter, till suddenly, all the pressure was gone. After Alfred managed to regain his sight, he turned to see what had occurred. And froze. Slightly above his eye level, was a glowing red eye. Attached to it, was a large, black, wolf-like dog. Crouching, it stood about Alfred's height. For some reason, Alfred realized it was Winter in his original form. He and the Dog-Natalya leaped into immediate combat. They were going so fast, that Alfred chose to turn to Ivan, who was lying on his back, gasping.

"Ivan! Are you all right? What happened?"

Ivan turned to smile weakly up at him.

"No... It is fine... I think that Winter and I... separated. Do you think that means that I am finally... normal? Human?"

Ivan laughed a little at that thought.

"No... that is too simple in my opinion..."

Alfred felt tears begin to prick the corners of his eyes.

"N-no! You were normal from the start! That's why you didn't kill me when we

first met! I'm sure Winter would have loved to have killed me, but you held him back,

and saved my life."

Ivan frowned.

"What about me looks normal? I am extremely tall, have purple eyes, and freakish amounts of strength! And to top it off, I have a dual personality with that Dog over there fighting Armageddon, where I completely black out and cannot remember anything during that time period! How is that normal to you?"

Alfred only graced him a smile and placed a hand on Ivan's chest.

"No, but that's on the outside. I only care about what's in here, the heart..."

Alfred paused to lean close to Ivan's face and place a hand on Ivan's head. "And what is in here, the mind."

Ivan considered this for a while, then gave a wry smile.

"Alfred F. Jones, that is just about the corniest thing I have ever-mmngf!"

Alfred had simply cut him off by pressing his lips to his. They tasted cool and icy against his slightly chapped ones. Refreshing. Ivan broke first, with a look of confusion.

"Wha- How did you know?"

Alfred smirked.

"Winter told me when you were sleeping. He said you would be to shy to tell me yourself."

Ivan pursed his lips in disagreement.

"I will only do this if you actually do love me. If Winter threatened you..."

"No, no. Actually... I've been having feelings for a while."

"Since when?"

"... Well, remember that time where I pulled the knife out of you? I kind of realized that I did kinda like you while you were... Uh... dead."

"How?"

I, uh, read your journal..."

"Ugh... You should be dead for reading that!"

Ivan's eyes began to close.

"I'm tired.

"Don't die on me! I'm a hero! You can't die in the hands of a hero!"

"... Not dying,... Just tired..."

Alfred began to relax, until a scream echoed throughout the room. Both glanced over just in time to see Winter fall over, obviously hurt. Winter had lost the battle. To the Dog-Natalya, who had promptly returned to normal. Ivan's eyes widened.

"No!"

Everyone watched as Winter turned into a line of grey smoke, and went back into Ivan, and promptly fell unconscious. Natalya began shrieking in rage.

"Brother! Now our plans to get married are ruined!"

She rounded on Alfred who was staring, shocked, at Ivan.

"You! This is all your fault! If you had just minded your business, none of this would have happened!"

Alfred just gaped stupidly at Natalya, getting ready to retort that he had actually chosen to jump in front that bullet, but she jumped up and grabbed him.

She then began to drag him from the room with amazing strength. Alfred tried struggling for a bit, but soon realized it was futile.

"Ummm... Where are we going?"

"Somewhere where I can kill you. You stole brother's love from me."

Alfred squirmed harder than ever then as they entered the same chamber with the metal contraption in it, and was once again harnessed into it. This time, Natalya went over to control panels, and fiddled with a few dials. A slow, churning hum expanded, till it sounded like an airplane engine starting up. A glowing crimson light seemed to glow from behind Alfred. Natalya gave a demented smirk.

"I will simply implant a Dog into you, with no preparation. Do you know how

painful that is? Heh. And if you even make it thru the synchronization with the

Dog, you probably will be mentally messed up as well. Farewell, one who messed

with brother's love..."

She sneered, and flipped a switch. A great flash lit up the entire room. Alfred squeezed his eyes shut, and screamed. A shock-wave followed, wherein Alfred was slammed against the restraints, and Natalya went flying into the concrete wall behind her, also accidentally smashing some panels. Then, there was silence. Nothing moved, and after a while, Alfred realized there was nothing to scream

about. The Spine had never hit him. The restraints suddenly released him, and Alfred fell to the ground, dazed. That was when he saw what had saved him. Or rather who. Ivan staggering around the room, holding his head, and moaning. Alfred ran over, and grabbed his shoulders.

"What were you think-"

That was Ivan began to scream, but differently than a usual scream. This one appeared to be full of anguish and pain over a hundred years. Ivan's eyes had rolled back in his head, and Ivan fell to the ground, completely still.

"Ivan!"

Alfred cried out, he began running towards Ivan, but stopped when Ivan jerked to a standing position, and slowly began moving towards Natalya. She looked as though she was just waking up from having her neck broken when she was blown back. Ivan leaped up, and began to rip her to shreds. Alfred turned away, feeling slightly sickened after feeling a slight warm spray across his back. This definitely was not one of his action video-games. This was real. Alfred barely choked back the rising bile in his throat. He was interrupted by that airplane engine whine building again, and two rock-like arms wrapping around his waist. Alfred began struggling automatically, thinking that he, too, would be ripped to pieces. Ivan only held him tighter, and that was when the world seemed to explode around

them.

When Alfred eventually did wake up, he almost fell back down. The world was just so... spinning… today... ugh. He groaned, and began to close his eyes again, but was picked by Ivan. He groaned, and relaxed against Ivan's back, which he slung over carefully, like a sack of potatoes. Just as he was about to fall asleep, he looked to see a whole mass of smoking rubble. Ivan had destroyed the whole complex by activating that machine. And had blocked Alfred with his body.

"Guh! Ivan, are you okay?"

There was a slight falter in his step, but Ivan remained silent.

"Hey... You ARE okay, right?"

Still no response.

"Are you mad at me? What did I do wrong!"

In one, swift movement, Ivan set Alfred down in front of him. Carefully, Ivan took Alfred's hand and placed it under his ever-present scarf. He guided it to he collar and pressed his fingers to the metal. Alfred jumped when his vision went black.

"I can't talk, so for your question, no I am not mad. "

"Ivan?"

"Yes?"

"Where are you?...Actually, where are we?"

"Inside my head... Since you are touching the collar, we can talk."

"O-okay. Well, since we're here, what happened?"

"... I took the Dog for you. Meaning that, currently, I have two Dogs in me.

Winter is battling the other one..."

"What! You shouldn't have done that! I could have taken it! It's just pain,

right?"

"No! It is... so much more than that... How would you like to almost have a

constant headache, hearing a voice inside telling you to kill everyone you see,

and every time you get cut, or killed, you black out, and wake up surrounded in

blood?"

Alfred paused. No, he had not considered that. Ivan thankfully re-entered the

conversation.

"Exactly. We-"

Ivan broke off and angry red cloud surrounded Alfred in Ivan's mind.

"kill. Kill. kill..."

"Nyet!"

Alfred tentatively called out. "Ivan?"

A sudden silence greeted him. Then,

"Kol, Kol, Kol, Kol…"

Alfred cringed. Though he had no idea what the word meant, he could feel the blood racing through his veins in fear.

All of a sudden, a green light floated in, encasing Alfred.

_Stay away from him__…_

Suddenly, Alfred could see again. Ivan was leaning against the side of a building, panting, and holding his head. Suddenly, he stood up, eyes blazing red, teeth bared, but then the eyes faded back to purple, and the slightly sharp teeth were hidden by those pale lips. In less than a second, he was in front of Alfred, crouched down, ready to attack. He was growling at what Alfred at first thought was a simple shadow. Now, he could tell it was really a man wearing a black cape. Alfred hesitantly touched Ivan's collar, and the world went momentarily black.

"Should I attack…?"

"Ah, no. No! You see I… know him, he's…"

Breaking out of contact with Ivan, he said to both pairs of ears.

"_Iggy?_"

**Cliffhanger! I promise I'll be better about updating, I promise!~**

**Reviews please? -rattles tin can- **

**I'll give out virtual cookies~~  
**


	8. Freedom

**See? Now I am updating… somewhat on time… **

**BUT! I will be unable to update next week due to a trip to Washington D.C. to see my aunt, so if anyone is in Washington, we should meet up!~**

**So, virtual cookies for reviewing that last chapter are for:**

**Congratulations and thank you for reviewing!~**

**Disclaimer: I unfortunately do not Hetalia, or else there would be yaoi and yuri galore, along with two episodes every week. **

**(WHY DID THEY QUIT?~)**

**Sadiq's POV:**

Sadiq groaned at his aching head, and stood up on a pile of rubble, looking towards the shining… sun? Was that the correct word? That Kerberos I had stupidly blown up the place. For once, he forgot about what he looked like, and went digging for the new specimen, Heracles Karpusi. After a few frantic digs, Sadiq was torn from his search by a scream. There was black-haired, older boy, standing his (girlfriend, or was that a man?), both of which were staring at Sadiq. He stupidly stared back, wondering what was wrong. Then it clicked. His face was mangled due to Natalya's brother.

_I have no point to live. Who will ever accept me, a freak?_

Sadiq, crouched down, and wept. He had never felt so unloved before in his life. Even the scientists at the place he was born at treated him with kindness. Well, until Natalya killed them all on one of her snaps… Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. It was the woman from before.

"E-Excuse me…, do you need any help…?"

It took all of Sadiq's remaining strength to nod, where soon after, he collapsed.

When Sadiq finally awoke, he was in… in… a bed. All around him was a simple olive-green and white room. There was a window, providing simple, plain sunlight to the room. Looking around some more from his space on the bed, he found a single nightstand with something strange on top of it. It was white with two holes in it, with a string around the back. For some reason, it sparked a memory from… somewhere…

_You use it to hide your eyes from the world! That's what a mask is for, deception, and disguise. _

Sadiq slid it onto his head, covering all of the scarred parts. And he was not a moment too late, for the boy came into the room, carrying a tray of delicious-smelling food. He gave a slight smile, and bowed.

"Konnichiwa. My name is Kiku. And yours is…?"

Sadiq was tounge-tied… He was, well, pretty.

"Number 00191481701145114."

"Excuse me?" Kiku blushed slightly.

"Ah! Sorry, Sadiq… Adnan"

Kiku nodded slowly, then handed over the tray.

"I-It is not much, b-but I made you some rice balls…"

They looked so… good… Sadiq quickly devoured all of them easily. Hosting a **Dog** does require a lot of energy… Already, he felt all of the strength return, as well as his more aggravated nature, due to the **Dog** as well. He squirmed uncomfortably at the now somewhat claustrophobic environment, and eyed the window.

"Uhhh, listen, I kind of sort of really have to go now… someone… important is, uh, waiting for me…"

Now the room began to unfocus, except for the window, which seemed to be window that led to everything. _Heracles…_

Kiku's eyes narrowed.

"No, really. I insist, you must rest. There must be some reason you fainted before. Please stay."

This room was a prison. Out. Now!

Kiku placed a steadying hand on Sadiq's shoulder, and that is what did it. He leapt from the bed, used his super-human speed to make a mad dash across the (carpeted) floor, and dove out the window.

His head cracked against the pavement, and Sadiq felt the blood stream out of the deep cut. Ugh. Too… much… blood loss. And with that Sadiq temporarily blacked out. When he came to, he heard crying next to him. It was Kiku, probably believing that something he did caused Sadiq to sprint out the fifth story window, and supposedly commit suicide. Sadiq decided to move out of pity for Kiku. Who would want to live their life thinking they killed someone? He probably could, but that was all due to the **Dog**, right? Slowly, he rose to sitting position, even though Kiku did not see due to the tears, but did however when Sadiq tried to make some noise.

"Ah! You came back!" Kiku's lovely dark brown eyes widened with happiness.

Sadiq decided to cut all ties immediately.

"Look. I'm not human, like you, got it? I'm a monster, and can kill you! So stay away from me!"

And with that, Sadiq ran out of the alleyway, and somewhere into a random throng of people. Kiku, stayed kneeling on the ground, a bit shocked.

"If you were… to kill me, you would have a while ago. Plus, I am not human as well…"

Kiku trailed off, and a small smile graced his pale lips. As soon as Sadiq jumped out the window, he had jumped out behind him as well, to try and save him. Except he, of course, landed on his feet.

"We will meet again… **Kerberos** Sadiq Adnan. As a rogue **Dog**, and co-president of the Resistance, we will annihilate you…"

With that, Kiku stood and jumped back up into the window, making a note to repair the glass later. Then he called out,

"Leader-san?"

"Yes?"

"It was a Second generation."

"Well, you know what to do, aru…"

"I will… soon. I want him to find out the ways of the world first. Maybe he will change… like that First Generation… Ahh… that Braginski one. T-the second of that series, I mean. Not the first. She never could… Too narrow-minded…"

"Yes, aru, I know which one you mean. Fine, we will wait a month, but after that… you should carry out the law. Kill it, aru."

"Hai."

And Kiku jumped out the window, and away into the growing dusk.

**Heracles' POV:**

Olive eyes opened to the sound of frantic digging, and someone calling a name

"Heracles? Heracles! Where are you?"

He simply fell asleep again. Naps felt so… good…

When he awoke again, there was nothing, just silence greeting his ears. Then, _Meow!~_, and he nearly jumped out of his skin. Curious about the noise, though, he pushed aside things to see what had made the noise. A bright light shone down upon him, and freezing air greeted him. It was too cold for his liking. A vague memory of his told of warm, sea air, with days spent lying around some ruins, but he brushed it away. Finally, he found the source of the _meow_ing. It was a tiny ball of fur, with two sharp ears, standing on four legs, and a whip-like tail. It was… loveable. The creature began to purr, and rubbed itself against his legs. And it was warm, and his ears could really use some heat right now…

"Mummy, why is that man walking around with a cat on his head?"

"It's not polite to stare, pet."

The man just stared at the two, and shrugged, not realizing what was wrong. Ugh. He needed a nap, since nothing made sense. What was this place? What was going on? The questions blurred in his head, and he promptly fell asleep in an alleyway.

**Sadiq's P.O.V.:**

After running for the longest time, Sadiq slowed down. Again, he felt bad for abandoning Kiku, but then again, he liked Kiku alive, not dead… Slowly, though, his focus returned to Heracles. That he could potentially be dead… or mercilessly out slaughtering people, and he knew how hard it was to get off that path. He shuddered at all the heavy sedatives that he had had to be put under. That was…bad. Yeah, bad pretty much summed it up… He sighed, and pushed his resurfacing past down. That was the last thing he needed, especially with Heracles, I mean, he could have killed at least a dozen people by now, but now that option seemed pretty unlikely now, since there were no screams.

Sadiq had paused in an alley to try and remember exactly where the wreckage was. He thought it had been somewhere around here. He started moving forward, just to trip over a pile of rubble. No, wait, it was a person sleeping. It was Heracles, and all he was doing was sleeping.

Well, now that Sadiq had just fell on top of him, he had begun to wake up. Sadiq scrambled up so that now, they were face-to-face, and slowly, Heracles opened his eyes to see him. Immediately, Sadiq spoke up.

"Hello, H-heracles… My name is Sadiq, and I am your new-"

"Your face… is… wrong."

"W-What?"

'No… not wrong, it is…it is…ugly"

Sadiq just stared at Heracles. How could the one he picked out hate him, or at least think his face was ugly?

"Yeah, well you're just a brat, then!"

Right after he said that, he realized that Heracles had indeed nodded off again. Sadiq sighed, and sat down beside him. Maybe it was all he could do, for now. But in the end, Sadiq made a vow to himself to get Heracles to like him.

**Done! Sorry it was so short, but I got a bit… lazy… heh…**

**Please review, if you want a cookie!~**

**Sincerely,**

**Russian Mafia**


	9. Magic?

**I had laziness to the extreme. .. Sorry about that.**

**Allonz-y!**

Alfred turned back to the other man.

"Arthur… what are you doing here?"

Arthur flinched at the sound of his name, but still chose to reply.

"I am here… because of you, git. You do realize how much it costs to fly here when you just run from your home to the airport, don't you, boy?"

"What did I do?"

Arthur began shifting his weight from foot to foot.

"It is not good to talk of it in public… Do you have anything, well, more quiet than the street"

Alfred looked up at Ivan, silently asking permission to bring to bring Arthur back to the flat. Ivan nodded, giving his silent approval, and led the way back with only a few falters.

Silently, the new trio entered the flat. Arthur took a quick look around, and then seated Alfred at the table.

"First, how did you manage to capture and tame a **Kerberos**?"

"What? Oh, you mean Ivan? No, we're just… _just very close friends_…"

"And what is exactly implied by that?"

"…"

At this time, Ivan entered the room upon hearing his name, looking at Alfred for a better explanation. Alfred shrugged not knowing one himself.

"Ehh… Continuing on, I have come to inform you that early this morning, I felt a distress signal coming from an extremely close connection. I checked telepathically with all of my brothers, and they were all asleep. And then, checked you-"

"Good to know where stand on YOUR priority list." Then, Alfred turned to Ivan. "Arthur has been able to see spirits and do magic since he was little."

"Git! Stop interrupting me!"

"Just continue Artie…"

"Atrocious nicknames! A-Anyway, the signal this time… came from you. This was definitely not that tracking signal I put on you years ago-"

"You put a tracking spell on me?"

"T-That's not important right now… Again, so this means that according to the current rulers of the-"

"What? You know what, no, just keep going."

"Stop interrupting me! …It means that according to the current rules written by the current rulers of the Mystic Court of the Fae, you are now a…"

"A what?"

"… A worker of magic."

"…What?"

Arthur looked away, and repeated.

"You are like me, a magic worker."

Alfred and Ivan both just stared at him, unbelieving. After quite a while, Alfred broke the silence.

"So, I'm like you? Wouldn't I have discovered that earlier, like when we were children, when you discovered you could work magic?"

Arthur looked up, surprised, and blushed.

"N-Not necessarily, it can remain dormant for years, such as your case, and I will have to test you to see if your magic is like mine. There are many possible types you can be…"

Alfred decided to chat with Ivan for a while. With more confidence that the last couple of times, he reached up, and touched the collar.

"_I-I never knew, I swear!"_

"_It is fine, I know you did not know."_

"_W-what do you think this means?"_

"_I am not truly sure, you may want ask Arthur."_

Alfred took his hand away, and repeated his question to Arthur.

"I am not sure yet. Your magic does not seem to very strong, but I will have to test and teach you about you magic."

"B-but I don't want it! I don't wanna learn how to use it!"

Arthur turned to once again look out the shattered window.

"If you do not use the power, it can grow and consume you."

"But I… I want to be normal!"

Arhurdur sighed, and looked away.

"That is impossible. If you choose not to use the magic, and are consciously aware of it, the magic will murder you."

Alfred lowered his head and muttered, "I guess I really don't have a choice, then…"

"… I know…I…I can help you though, if you want me to…"

"How else could I learn?"

"Books…"

"Yeah, I guess you can help me…"

"Good. Then get your **Kerberos** to find us some large, private, open area."

Alfred sighed.

"Ivan's not my **Kerberos**… he's my…f-friend…"

Ivan narrowed his eyes at Alfred, who in return gave him a look saying "I'll tell you later".

Arthur widened his eyes, and started to back away from Ivan.

"Alfred step away from him then. If you cannot control him, or have magical influence over him, he will tear you to shreds."

Alfred flung himself in front of Ivan, eyes wide open in shock and fear.

"Y-You wouldn't do that! You don't even know him! Ivan would never do that!"

Arthur gave a placid glare back.

Ivan stepped around Alfred, and calmly walked over to Arthur, who was now slowly backing up. Ivan then grabbed the collar of Arthur's shirt and lifted the little man off his feet so that they could see eye to eye. Arthur's face flushed an healthy shade of red, and he began to open his mouth to begin to recite a binding chant. Ivan switched to only holding Arthur with one hand, and picked up Arthur's hand and touched it to the collar. Arthur froze in place, eyes staring out, but not truly seeing anything. Both stood like stone statues in the kitchen. After a tick though, Arthur blinked, sighed, and Ivan set him down.

"So… I see. You're not a real **Kerberos**, just a **Kerberos **half of the time… you share a mind…"

Arthur's eyes went out of focus, then decided to finish his thought.

"But you have two **Kerberos**… what happened there? And you are not bound to Alfred, but…"

Arthur narrowed his eyes, and rounded on Alfred.

"You! How did you get him to follow you?"

Alfred shrugged.

"He took a bullet for me."

Arthur ducked his head, thinking, and then shook it off.

"Well then. On to more important matters, for now. You're like a ticking time bomb with all of that raw magic inside of you."

Alfred grimaced, and sighed.

"… Fine…"

Arthur, who was about to launch into another lecture on how to use magic was a gift, stopped short.

"What? So you're just going to agree? No fight, nothing?"

Alfred glanced up at Ivan, who cringed at the invisible pain, but nodded

"As long as you can help Ivan."

Arthur smirked.

"I knew there was a catch. I-I am actually not trained that well in exorcising, but I will try to work out a solution…"

Alfred gave a slight smile, and turned back to Ivan, who gave a tense smile as well and then nodded.

"Then let's go."


End file.
